An acoustic remote sensing method for high-precision propeller rotation and speed estimation of unmanned underwater vehicles
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3942_1_online.pdf
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Author(s)
Railey, Kristen
DiBiaso, Dino
Schmidt, Henrik
Date Issued
December 1, 2020
Journal
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Publisher
Acoustical Society of America
Citation
Kristen Railey, Dino DiBiaso, Henrik Schmidt; An acoustic remote sensing method for high-precision propeller rotation and speed estimation of unmanned underwater vehicles. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 1 December 2020; 148 (6): 3942–3950.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Understanding the dominant sources of acoustic noise in unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) is important for passively tracking these platforms and for designing quieter propulsion systems. This work describes how the vehicle's propeller rotation can be passively measured by the unique high frequency acoustic signature of a brushless DC motor propulsion system and compares this method to Detection of Envelope Modulation on Noise (DEMON) measurements. First, causes of high frequency tones were determined through direct measurements of two micro-UUVs and an isolated thruster at a range of speeds. From this analysis, common and dominant features of noise were established: strong tones at the motor's pulse-width modulated frequency and its second harmonic, with sideband spacings at the propeller rotation frequency multiplied by the poles of the motor. In shallow water field experiments, measuring motor noise was a superior method to the DEMON algorithm for estimating UUV speed. In negligible currents, and when the UUV turn-per-knot ratio was known, measuring motor noise produced speed predictions within the error range of the vehicle's inertial navigation system's reported speed. These findings are applicable to other vehicles that rely on brushless DC motors and can be easily integrated into passive acoustic systems for target motion analysis.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
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Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0002954
